On the need to differentiate between the structural and functional aspects of the psychology of art…

The psychology of art is a complex topic and this description serves only as an introduction to a ‘developing’ field of study. Psychology forms the basis of many aspects of life and art or expression of art in any form and especially through sculpture and painting is also based on psychological theories and understanding. The relation between psychology and art is almost inevitable; there can be no art without psychology and vice versa. The artist begins with a blank canvas on which he/ she projects his or her own psychological being and art remains as the medium of such projection. Thus art can best be defined as a medium through which an artist or creative individual projects his or her feelings and frustrations and deeper psychological necessities. This way art is intricately linked to psychology. Yet the psychology of art as a formal discipline has not found extensive recognition and has only very recently gained popularity in western universities.

Art is a human creative skill, which is demonstrated through imaginative designs, sounds, or ideas. Art and artistic skills have been integral to our Histories. Events, life styles, and the other prevalent things, were all depicted through the various art forms of those times. Art has been evolving with thoughts, ideas, events, times, and technological developments, and is the father of today’s Graphical Illusions.

The Ancient History of Art dates back to as many as 2 million years ago, to the Stone Age. The first Stone Tools used to create impressions, can be said to be the initial ideas of Art. Ancient Art is actually a symbolic representation of information about the life styles and the representation of facts by the people of those times, who framed a strong ground for Art. Since then, Art has been transforming to accommodate the changes and the improvements of every era to suit connoisseurs’ tastes and ideas.

History of Art. Prior to taking up the Modern Art Concepts, lets take a look at the different art ages:

The market for Chinese contemporary art has developed at a feverish pace, becoming the single fastest-growing segment of the international art market. Since 2004, prices for works by Chinese contemporary artists have increased by 2,000 percent or more, with paintings that once sold for under $50,000 now bringing sums above $1 million. Nowhere has this boom been felt more appreciably than in China, where it has spawned massive gallery districts, 1,600 auction houses, and the first generation of Chinese contemporary-art collectors.

This craze for Chinese contemporary art has also given rise to a wave of criticism. There are charges that Chinese collectors are using mainland auction houses to boost prices and engage in widespread speculation, just as if they were trading in stocks or real estate. Western collectors are also being accused of speculation, by artists who say they buy works cheap and then sell them for ten times the original prices-and sometimes more.

Those who entered this market in the past three years found Chinese contemporary art to be a surefire bet as prices doubled with each sale. Sotheby’s first New York sale of Asian contemporary

If you don’t love art, and are simply considering buying art as an investment, the best advice is to find something else to invest in. Collecting and buying art should be a labor of love, not a cold-hearted financial calculation.

There are many factors that a serious art collector should take into account when buying art. Here are some of the main ones:

1. Know Your Own Tastes

Never buy something just because an “art expert” tells you that it is a beautiful, classic piece of art. If the art piece means nothing to you, it’s not worth you buying it. Unless you’re a professional trader, the art piece you buy is going to be something that you own and look at for years. So choose art that speaks to you. And to do that, you need to know what you like and what you don’t like.

An important secondary benefit of knowing your taste is it gives you the ability to clearly state your desires to art dealers that you work with to help build your collection.

As any salesperson knows, in order to make a sell, you have to overcome the difficult task of self-promotion. For an artist, you have poured your heart and soul into your art, and now you are being asked to go out and market it. In doing so, there is a natural fear of personal rejection. Nonetheless, in order for your art to reach people that truly “see” you, overcoming this obstacle is mandatory.

Fortunately today many of the best ways for self-promotion are not quite as direct and confrontational. Here are 10 important ways to self-promote your art to achieve a successful audience:

1. Create a website. While a portfolio of your work is also mandatory, having a website reaches an immeasurable number of art enthusiasts. Take the time to design a professional site with good presentation of your work.

2. Blog, Blog, Blog. Blogging is an excellent way to create a buzz about your work and to let people know what your art is about. You can create your own blog page (recommended) where you highlight your work while also educating your reader. This serves as a “channel” through which other bloggers can be

First look for the narrative, simply describe what you see. Who or what is depicted, what’s going on? If you see people and things, the painting is figurative; if you see lines and splashes – go for non-figurative. The name of the painting might come in handy, especially when it comes to Dali.

What seems to be more important for the artist – representation or expression? Compare the paintings in the styles of hyperrealism and expressionism – you can always tell if the images look idealized or expressly distorted.

Notice the feelings you get looking at the painting, the general impression produced by the entire painting and its elements – later you will dig deeper to understand what inspired those emotions. There is a reason why you like one painting more than the other. Your taste in art is as unique as your taste in food or clothes, inspired by your background, upbringing and even professional expertise.

THE BACKROUND

Collect information on the artist and the historical background. To analyze “Guernica” by Picasso, you need to know that Guernica is a town demolished by the Nazi, and you have to read

Inspiration is everywhere. It does not matter what kind of artist you are, from a painter to a writer, inspiration can be found anywhere. Some find it in nature; some find it deep in the cities; some have the purpose of creating detailed figurative drawings; while some tend to care more about the process of being creative. The one thing that remains the same, though, is that artists are more productive when they know how to find and use inspiration around them.

If you’re up for some creative challenges, here are a few classic favorites:

1. Look at People

There are many ways to use your surroundings to find inspiration. If you are the kind of artist that likes to search for inspiration outdoors, you can go to a park and people watch. You can observe their interactions with one another, or with their kids, or even with their pets; you can observe them in contrast to the environment around them. Then, you can use those people’s experiences as inspiration for your art. You can paint them exactly as you seem them, or you can use what they represent and draw inspiration from the merging

I still remember when I was first invited to an art gallery by my friends and my instinctive reaction was a feeling of apprehension. It was a strange feeling as I have always loved art especially paintings, so why the anxiety. It dawned on me that I was not worried about experiencing the paintings but how to react to them, what to say and how to converse about them so as to not look like a complete moron to my friends.

This very unusual problem led me to explore and find a simple and down-to-earth approach to art appreciation. The idea is to demystify the process and make it easy to enjoy art. Here are some steps that I came up with to make it an easy learning experience

Tip No. 1 Make it a habit to observe and appreciate art

In order to understand your own specific interests and inclinations in art, develop a habit of observing seriously any art object that you come across be it a painting or a sculpture. We often overlook art objects sitting right in front of us. How many of us honestly take some of the free minutes

Art galleries are ideal platform for displaying visual arts, be it painting, sculpture, or photography. Art galleries are a collected culmination of endurance, time, effort, and tastes of many generations, in order to depict the diverse arts and cultures of various ages. Therefore, be it contemporary or traditional Fine Arts, art galleries house all. Promoting emerging artists of all ages, art galleries give them too a chance to flaunt their artworks, at times amidst internationally renowned artists. Committed to excellence in art, the top 10 art galleries proffer you a rich, memorable experience. This article tries to picture the top ten galleries of the world.

1. Musee Du Louvre, Paris. The Louvre of Paris is one of the most visited art museums of France. From its beginning as a royal fortress to the public gallery that we see today, Louvre, with it architectural superiority and one of the most stunning artistic collections, has dominated Paris ever since its establishment. The artworks on display in this art gallery have a universal appeal that strike a chord on all their spectators. Some exceptional paintings the museum houses include, Jacques-Louis David’s “The Coronation of Napoleon,” Hyacinth Rigaud’s “Louis XIV,” and

1. DE-CLUTTER YOUR HOME – Before you begin you need to start with a ‘blank canvas’; I’m sure if you had booked an art consultant or interior designer to make their recommendations you’d tidy up, so make this your starting point. It is also a fundamental feng shui principle that de-cluttering your environment will de-clutter your mind. If you don’t have the time or the job is too big call in an expert.

2. THINK LIKE A GUEST – Now walk through your home imagining you’re a visitor or guest so you can understand the logistics of entering your home for the first time and what impression or atmosphere you wish to create. Important areas from a guest’s point of view are: the entrance (this is their first impression) the path from the entrance to the main living/entertaining area and an outdoor area if you have one. Look for what you think they would notice: as you enter your home, is it obvious where the kitchen/living areas are from the entrance; are private rooms or areas such as bedrooms ‘on show’ as guests walk through the house to the living area. Can any outdoor areas be seen

Before creating abstract art it is important to understand its meaning and use. We can broadly say that all art is either leaning towards being realistic or towards being the changed interpretation of reality as rendered by an artist.

By changed interpretation of reality, it can range from just a small change where the colour of the sky is changed from the actual light blue to say a green or can be a completely different interpretation of reality such as a cubist painting by Picasso, where he completely rearranges and drastically changes a woman’s face. Both can be called abstract, though the first one is clearly very much realism and very little abstractionism, whereas the second one is very little realism and very much abstractionism.

Therefore we can safely say that art that is abstract, can be said to be the changed interpretation of reality as rendered by an artist (or any individual who creates a piece of art). This should give you a general idea of what this kind of art is, but more importantly it is the why of it that is the key to it all.

I am going to suggest ways to appreciate art and experience it in a way that is honest and fair to the viewer visiting art galleries, art exhibitions, and art museums and other art displays. Being an art viewer can be very fulfilling and enjoying but it also causes unease among those who don’t really know how to approach art because of all the uncertainty.

It’s important to acknowledge that I’m not providing a check-list of ways of looking at art but providing a guide for more engaging art viewing. I would like to change the attitude some people have which is giving a two second glance at an artwork (although if you can’t grasp the viewer’s interest this is simply being selective) or trying to find meaning in the exhibition label rather than looking at the art face to face.

First I will start with a quote from Keith Haring in his Journal, October 14, 1978

“The meaning of art as it is experienced by the viewer, not the artist. The artist’s ideas are not essential to the art as seen by the viewer. The viewer is an artist in the sense that he

What are the most important things to look for when comparing martial arts schools?

What are the tell tale signs of a quality school that you can spot immediately?

What are the best questions to ask, and how do you know if they can really deliver?

What part of a contract can you negotiate?

These are just some of the important questions you need to know how to answer before shopping around for a martial arts school.

A commitment to martial arts is an investment in time and money, so knowing exactly what to look for in a school, and knowing what questions to ask, will give you the clarity and confidence to make a smart choice.

A bad choice in a martial arts school can be an expensive lesson, so use this guide to educate yourself.

There is a huge variety of martial arts schools out there. Facilities range from expensive health-club-like facilities to open space warehouses. Martial arts schools aren’t regulated to insure quality of instruction or business practice. There is no official governing body and no universal grading standard in martial arts. Almost anyone can open a

In these days of budget cuts and limited resources, it’s often the case that fine arts classes are the first to be cut. This is unfortunate, since a well-rounded education must include the arts. Studying the arts, whether in the academic study of art appreciation, or learning how to actually do art, is crucial to teach young people how to think creatively and independently. Some studies have shown that students that participate in a strong art education program demonstrate higher performance in other academic areas. Expert conjecture this is due to the fact that when people do art, they exercise the right hemisphere of the brain, where higher reasoning functioning occurs.

Art education is an area of learning based upon the visual, tangible arts, such as drawing, painting, sculpture, and design in jewelry, pottery, weaving, and fabrics. These days, it includes photography, video, film, design, and computer art.

The first art schools were mentioned by Plato in 400 B.C. Art was taught in Europe through the Method system for centuries. Artists, like most guilds, took on apprentices who learned their trade. During the Renaissance, more formal training took place in art studios. Design was emphasized

Web-based artist networks, art marketplaces, and online art galleries are helping artists who are selling art online, a more and more common practice as time goes by. More often than not, selling your art online on your own can be an experience that disenchants many artists with the prospect of selling art online using any tool; even a personal website can be difficult to manage in comparison to an online gallery account.

The online art market is growing considerably, and with online art sales on the rise, it is proving to be an increasingly fruitful avenue for artists, even compared to traditional methods for selling art as an artist. Previously established networks like those used by online art marketplaces and gallery settings have many things going for them that personal websites do not, namely the ability to draw on greater authority rankings that help them appear higher on search engine results. Larger sites draw a large portion of the market of online art buyers looking for artists who are selling art online. These buyers are already seeking art to buy online, and are open to the prospect of purchasing directly from the artist. Selling your art online

Why should a person purchase original art? We could all save some money and buy a cheap poster to hang in our living room or a mass-produced dew-dad to hang out on the coffee table. There are many people do the aforementioned and are quite happy. But for those of you who like to step out of the ordinary and do buy or are thinking of buying original art, here are ten fantastic reasons to buy original art.

You can buy original art simply to feel or be inspired. Art that inspires you and effects you in a meaningful way should be in your home. Not many things can inspire and make you feel like a great piece of art. Art that inspires and connects deeply with you is to be valued and be seen often. This connection allows you to share in the passion, expression, creativity and inspiration of the artist who created it. The art moves you and enhances your life.

It’s certainly alright to buy original art to simply enhance and beautify your living or work space. The right piece of art and the aesthetic quality that comes with it can

What with the explosive escalation of labor and parts costs to build a collector car or do a proper restoration of a car or truck, collecting automotive art and prints may be a substantial alternative to actually owning a great automotive icon. Artists from around the world are currently selling great works, and you can utilize them in collecting reasonable and provocative car art. You just have to be willing to make the effort to find them. Perhaps this article may prove helpful to you in that pursuit.

It matters little what type of car or truck you love to follow. There are artists who have depicted your favorite vehicle in one form or another, and you can find those artists using the resources suggested here in this article. You may favor restored vehicles, or maybe custom cars, hot rods, muscle cars, pickups, legal classics, vintage racers, drag racing vehicles, vintage antiques, or even foreign sports cars. Trust me…..it has been rendered in oils, water colors, or ink art work by someone somewhere, and you can buy it now. You just have to be able to locate what you want.

1. Presentation Present your art in the most professional way possible. Ideally, showcase your art in a gallery, an online gallery if you want to sell your art online. You could create your own online gallery.

2. Traffic, traffic, traffic! Even if you have the most beautiful paintings in the world in your gallery, you will have little success selling your work unless people know where you are. Market your art through free ads, paid ads if you like, pay-per-click ads, websites, blogs, forums and articles.

Write “how to” articles about art. This is a great way to generate traffic to your site. At the end of your article say something like: “Want to see my art? Click on “(your name)
Art” below in my resource box.” Let the “(your name) Art” be a hyperlink to your art gallery. Also, have business cards made up and distribute them in as many ways possible. Be as creative as you want in marketing your art. Just use common sense and be wise not to do anything evil.

I must mention eBay.com. eBay gets lots of traffic, but you are probably going to have to lower your prices

There is a ton of literature about pretty much everything to do with art out there. Head to your local library and you’ll find plenty of books on art. But where do you begin? You don’t want to start by reading up on a very specific branch of art. Instead, find a book for beginners that’s very broad and offers more of a general overview of art without going into too much detail. You want a book that explains things clearly but is still informative and interesting. Look online as well for books on art. If you’re keen on practising art, you’ll find plenty of useful books and guides for beginners, as well as plenty for more advanced artists.

2 – Visit galleries

A great way to expand your knowledge of art is to visit art galleries. Most galleries display works of art with a short overview of the work. Many galleries offer audio commentaries that are available via headsets or some other device that you can borrow. Listening to the commentaries is a lot more useful and informative because they delve into more detail about the works and different genres and periods of art that

Fine Arts is defined in the Encarta Dictionary as being, “any art form, for example, painting, sculpture, architecture, drawing, or engraving, that is considered to have purely aesthetic value” (Encarta, 2004). Though this definition is used in relationship with the arts in the regular world, in regards to teaching, fine arts is defined as a subject beneficial, not essential, to the learning process and is often phased out because of lack of time, little learning potential, and no money. Fine arts is simply seen as painting and drawing, not a subject studied by an academic scholar. Writer Victoria Jacobs explains, “Arts in elementary schools have often been separated from the core curriculum and instead, offered as enrichment activities that are considered beneficial but not essential” (Jacobs, 1999, p. 2).

What is missing in classrooms is the lack of teacher knowledge of the benefits of maintaining an art- based curriculum. Teachers “have very little understanding of the arts as disciplines of study. They think of the arts instruction as teacher-oriented projects used to entertain or teach other disciplines” (Berghoff, 2003, p. 12). Fine arts expand the boundaries of learning for the students and encourage creative thinking and a